Ex-prosecutor sues Hallinan

Dennis J. Opatrny, OF THE EXAMINER STAFF

Published 4:00 am, Saturday, July 13, 1996

1996-07-13 04:00:00 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- A former prosecutor accused of sexual harassment by a female colleague after they had a sexual encounter on his office desk has sued District Attorney Terence Hallinan for slander, alleging that San Francisco's chief law enforcement officer spread false accounts of the incident.

George Lee, 26, also alleged Friday that Hallinan was guilty of sex discrimination by forcing him to resign but promoting the woman, Libby Liu, 31, who was also named in the suit.

"Basically, I'm the ultimate victim of a lie, which originated with her and was perpetuated by Mr. Hallinan," Lee said in an interview.

President Trump addresses nation after mass shooting at Florida SchoolWhite House

"What really concerns me is that the district attorneys are the people in The City who are supposed to decide what the truth is, and it's very clear they don't care about what the truth is," Lee said.

John Shanley, Hallinan's spokesman, said the district attorney had not been served with the suit and would reserve comment.

Liu, who prosecutes misdemeanors, referred questions to her superiors and declined to discuss the incident.

Liu was hired after Hallinan became district attorney. She declined to say how she got the job. But sources in the district attorney's office say her parents are close friends of the Fang family, which owns the Independent newspaper. Ted Fang, the paper's publisher, has been a strong supporter of Hallinan and endorsed him in the election.

Lee has maintained that he and Liu had after-work drinks April 12 at the bar across from the Hall of Justice and did some heavy smooching.

Lee said he later returned to his office and was surprised when Liu walked in and they resumed where they had left off at the saloon.

His lawsuit, filed by attorney Bob Moore, a former prosecutor and ex-tight end for the Raiders, said: "Lee and Liu engaged in mutual and consensual kissing, touching and petting."

On April 24, the suit alleges, Liu told Hallinan, his then-chief assistant Marla Miller and another prosecutor that Lee had sexually assaulted her.

Liu had told Miller of the encounter earlier, but did not make a formal complaint. Miller later resigned because Hallinan criticized her for failing to inform him immediately of Liu's verbal complaint.

Hallinan, who himself made a $40,000 settlement of a 1994 sexual harassment complaint leveled by a former aide when he was a supervisor, has said he told Lee to resign or face termination in hopes the matter would go away.

Lee also was placed in probation by former District Attorney Arlo Smith for an incident in a domestic dispute case when he sought to date the victim, who reported his advances.

Hallinan said in an interview May 3 that after an investigation by his office, he believed Liu and not Lee.

Moore said he was unable to calculate the monetary damages suffered by Lee, but would have firm numbers by trial time. Lee remains unemployed.&lt;